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bring so great a force with you?" For they were considering, because of the death of Adranase the curopalates, that perhaps the emperor ought to honor Kourkenios as curopalates, since in the meantime the children of Adranase the curopalates, after their father died, had some disputes with their cousin. Because Kourkenios had also sent his first man to the emperor with a great gift, requesting the office of curopalates or that of magistros, the four brothers, that is, the children of Adranase the curopalates, supposed that he was going there in order to make Kourkenios curopalates. But the patrikios Constantine explained that: "It is because I am about to honor Kourkenios as magistros that I am also bringing so great a force." And when the same patrikios Constantine had departed to the land of Kourkenios, he honored him as magistros and bidding him farewell ***, that: "I am going to David the magistros." And the same patrikios Constantine also had an order from the emperor and gifts for David. And he entered the castle of the patrikios Asotios, also called Kiskases, at Ardanoutzin, and gave him the emperor's order for him, containing nothing about the castle of Ardanoutzin, but about other matters. But the patrikios Constantine said to him that: "Even though the order contains nothing about the castle of Ardanoutzin, nevertheless, since the monk Agapios came to the emperor and reported to him all that you instructed him concerning the castle of Ardanoutzin, for this reason he also sent me, so that I might take possession of the castle and bring into it the force which I am leading." And since, as has been said before, the patrikios Asotios, also called Kiskases, was at enmity with his son-in-law, Kourkenios, he was eager to give his castle to the emperor instead. And the patrikios Constantine had with him a small standard, and he gave it to the patrikios Asotios, also called Kiskases. And he, mounting it on a spear, gave it to the patrikios Constantine, saying that: "Set it up above on the wall, so that all may know that from this day forth this castle belongs to the emperor." And when the patrikios Constantine did this and set up the small standard on top of the wall and acclaimed the emperors of the Romans according to custom, it became known to all that the patrikios Asotios, also called Kiskases, had presented the castle of Ardanoutzin to the emperor. David the great, therefore, did not give his own land to the emperor, although it perhaps borders on the tourma of Akampsis and on Mourgoule. The patrikios Constantine therefore reported to the emperor, sending out two reports, the one containing how he had honored Kourkenios as magistros, and how Kourkenios had accepted the office of magistros and acclaimed the emperor; and the other containing information about the castle of Ardanoutzin, and how he had received it from the patrikios Asotios, also called Kiskases, and that the patrikios Asotios and his son-in-law, the magistros Kourkenios, have a great difference and enmity towards each other, and that the emperor should send help to garrison this castle, and that, if it is possible, the domestic of the schools should also come. When the Iberians saw these things, both the magistros Kourkenios and the magistros David, the brother of the curopalates Asotios, they wrote to the emperor that: "If your majesty accepts this, and it should enter into the midst of our land, we will depart from the servitude of your majesty, and we will side with the Saracens, since we are to have battles and wars with the Romans, and being compelled we will have to move an army against both the castle of Ardanoutzin and its land and Romanía itself." Having learned these things both through the letters of the aforementioned rulers and having heard from the men sent by them, and being frightened, lest they should side with the Saracens and lead the armies of Persia against Romanía, he refused

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τοσοῦτον λαὸν ἐπιφέρῃ μετὰ σεαυτοῦ;" Ἐσκέπτοντο γὰρ διὰ τὸ ἀποθανεῖν Ἀδρανασὲ τὸν κουροπαλάτην, ὅτι μήπως ὁ βασιλεὺς τὸν Κουρκένιον ὀφείλει τιμῆσαι κουροπαλάτην, ἐπειδὴ ἀναμεταξὺ οἱ τοῦ Ἀδρανασὲ τοῦ κουροπαλάτου παῖδες, τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτῶν τελευτησάντος, φιλονικίας τινὰς ἔσχον μετὰ τοῦ ἐξαδέλφου αὐτῶν. ∆ιὰ τὸ καὶ τὸν πρῶτον ἄνθρωπον αὐτοῦ ἀπολῦσαι μετὰ μεγάλου κανισκίου τὸν Κουρκένιον πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα, ἐξαιτούμενον τὸ κουροπαλατίκιν ἢ τὸ μαγιστρᾶτον, ὑπέλαβον οἱ τέσσαρες ἀδελφοί, ἤγουν οἱ τοῦ Ἀδρανασὲ τοῦ κουροπαλάτου παῖδες, ὅτι διὰ τὸ ποιῆσαι τὸν Κουρκένιον κουροπαλάτην ἀπέρχεται ἐκεῖσε. Ὁ δὲ πατρίκιος Κωνσταντῖνος ἀπελογήσατο, ὅτι· "∆ιὰ τὸ μέλλειν με τιμῆσαι τὸν Κουρκένιον μάγιστρον ἐπιφέρομαι καὶ τὸν τοσοῦτον λαόν." Καὶ ἀπελθόντος τοῦ αὐτοῦ πατρικίου Κωνσταντίνου εἰς τὴν χώραν τοῦ Κουρκενίου, ἐτίμησεν αὐτὸν μάγιστρον καὶ ἀποχαιρετίσας αὐτὸν ***, ὅτι· "Ἀπέρχομαι εἰς τὸν ∆αυὶδ τὸν μάγιστρον." Εἶχεν δὲ ὁ αὐτὸς πατρίκιος Κωνσταντῖνος καὶ πρὸς τὸν ∆αυὶδ κέλευσιν ἀπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ ξένια. Καὶ εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸ κάστρον τοῦ πατρικίου Ἀσωτίου, τοῦ καὶ Κισκάση, εἰς τὸ Ἀρδανούτζιν, καὶ δέδωκεν αὐτῷ τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν τοῦ βασιλέως κέλευσιν οὐ περὶ τοῦ κάστρου Ἀρδανουτζίου περιέχουσάν τι, ἀλλὰ περὶ ἑτέρων ὑποθέσεων. Εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ πατρίκιος Κωνσταντῖνος, ὅτι· "Κἂν μὲν ἡ κέλευσις οὐδὲν περιέχει περὶ τοῦ κάστρου Ἀρδανουτζίου, ἀλλ' οὖν τοῦ μοναχοῦ Ἀγαπίου πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα εἰσελθόντος καὶ ἀναγγείλαντος αὐτόν, ὅσα καὶ παρήγγειλας αὐτὸν περὶ τοῦ κάστρου Ἀρδανουτζίου, διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἀπέστειλέν με, ὅπως παραλάβω τὸ κάστρον καὶ εἰσαγάγω ἐν αὐτῷ, ὅνπερ περιφέρομαι λαόν." Καὶ ἐπειδή, καθὰ προείρηται, εἶχεν ἔχθραν ὁ πατρίκιος Ἀσώτιος, ὁ καὶ Κισκάσης, μετὰ τοῦ γαμβροῦ αὐτοῦ, τοῦ Κουρκένη, προεθυμήθη δοῦναι τὸ κάστρον αὐτοῦ μᾶλλον τὸν βασιλέα. Ὁ δὲ πατρίκιος Κωνσταντῖνος εἶχεν παρ' ἑαυτῷ φλάμμουλα, καὶ ἐπιδέδωκεν τῷ πατρικίῳ Ἀσωτίῳ, τῷ καὶ Κισκάσῃ. Ὁ δὲ βαλὼν αὐτὸ εἰς κοντάριον, ἐπιδέδωκεν τῷ πατρικίῳ Κωνσταντίνῳ εἰπών, ὅτι· "Ἐπίστησον αὐτὸ ἄνωθεν εἰς τὸ τεῖχος, ἵνα γνῶσιν πάντες τοῦ βασιλέως εἶναι ἀπὸ τῆς σήμερον ἡμέρας τὸ τοιοῦτον κάστρον." Καὶ τοῦτο ποιήσας ὁ πατρίκιος Κωνσταντῖνος καὶ τὸ φλάμμουλον ἐπιστήσας ἄνωθεν τοῦ τείχους καὶ τοὺς βασιλεῖς τῶν Ῥωμαίων κατὰ τὸ εἰωθὸς εὐφημήσας, πᾶσιν ἐγένετο γνωστόν, ὅτι τὸ κάστρον τὸ Ἀρδανούτζιν ἀπεχαρίσατο ὁ πατρίκιος Ἀσώτιος, ὁ καὶ Κισκάσης, τὸν βασιλέα. Ὁ οὖν ∆αυίδ, ὁ μέγας, τὴν ἑαυτοῦ χώραν οὐκ ἐδίδου τὸν βασιλέα, κἂν τάχα συνορῇ τὴν τοῦρμαν τοῦ Ἀκαμψῆ καὶ τῇ Μουργούλῃ. Ὁ οὖν πατρίκιος Κωνσταντῖνος ἀνήγαγε πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα, ἐξαποστείλας δύο ἀναφοράς, τὴν μὲν μίαν περιέχουσαν, ὅπως ἐτίμησεν τὸν Κουρκένην μάγιστρον, καὶ ὅπως ὁ Κουρκένιος ἀπεδέξατο τὸ μαγιστρᾶτον, καὶ εὐφήμησεν τὸν βασιλέα, τὴν δὲ ἑτέραν περιέχουσαν περὶ τοῦ κάστρου Ἀρδανουτζίου, καὶ ὅπως τοῦτο παρέλαβεν παρὰ τοῦ πατρικίου Ἀσωτίου, τοῦ καὶ Κισκάση, καὶ ὅτι μεγάλην διαφορὰν καὶ ἔχθραν ἔχουσιν πρὸς ἀλλήλους ὅ τε πατρίκιος Ἀσώτιος μετὰ τοῦ γαμβροῦ αὐτοῦ, τοῦ μαγίστρου Κουρκενίου, καὶ ἵνα ἀποστείλῃ ὁ βασιλεὺς βοήθειαν τοῦ ταξατεῦσαι τὸ τοιοῦτον κάστρον, καὶ ὅτι, εἰ ἐνδέχεται, ἔλθῃ καὶ ὁ δομέστικος τῶν σχολῶν. Ταῦτα ἰδόντες οἱ Ἴβηρες, ὅ τε μάγιστρος Κουρκένιος καὶ ὁ μάγιστρος ∆αυίδ, ὁ ἀδελφὸς τοῦ κουροπαλάτου Ἀσωτίου, ἔγραψαν πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα, ὅτι· "Εἰ τοῦτο καταδέξηται ἡ βασιλεία σου, καὶ εἰσέλθῃ μέσον τῆς χώρας ἡμῶν, ἐξερχόμεθα τῆς δουλώσεως τῆς βασιλείας σου, καὶ γινόμεθα μετὰ τῶν Σαρακηνῶν, ἐπειδὴ ἔχειν ἔχομεν μετὰ τῶν Ῥωμαίων μάχας καὶ πολέμια, καὶ βιαζόμενοι κινῆσαι ἔχομεν φοσσᾶτον κατά τε τοῦ κάστρου Ἀρδανουτζίου καὶ τῆς χώρας αὐτοῦ καὶ αὐτῆς τῆς Ῥωμανίας." Ταῦτα καὶ διὰ τῶν γραμμάτων τῶν προρρηθέντων ἀρχόντων ἀναμαθὼν καὶ παρὰ τῶν ἀποσταλέντων παρ' αὐτῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀκηκοὼς καὶ πτοηθείς, μήπως γένωνται μετὰ τῶν Σαρακηνῶν καὶ ἐξαγάγωσι τὰ τῆς Περσίας φοσσᾶτα κατὰ Ῥωμανίας, ἠρνήσατο